I am on a roll when it comes to de-bullshitting my life lately. I have been a Flickr photo account user since 2005 and have been through the ups, downs, acquisitions and no more. I simply do not see the value in another photo host with little to no social engagement with other photographers.
Besides, I’d rather grow my platforms than sharecrop someone else’s land and make them money.
It is fast approaching that time of year again. November is designated as National Novel Writing Month with their stated goal being 50,000 words a month into a novel. I love the concept but it isn’t practical for me so of course I’ll be hacking this.
Now that I am pivoting focus from photography to writing these next few months, it’ll probably go extreme. The intent is to crank out a couple of short stories, while finish plotting out the bigger ones. There may even be more frequent content here and in my personal journal as well.
I thought about the importance of my commitment to post here daily but nope, enjoying the process is more important than a stringent schedule.
But then too I get frustrated with being a single-focused individual. I also want to grab the camera or write code but what has priority for me? What has more value?
Once I realize that one value is more important to me than another, I have to ask if I am living accordingly.
What’s more important to me? Learning or creating? Expand or focus?
Once I work that out I may yet go extreme with it. “All in” as they say and optimize my life around it and let go of almost everything else. And then change it up after that.
2019 was a great year for my portrait photography. There are so many creative, beautiful people out there and it was great to work with them but I need a break.
I’m hanging up the camera for portrait photography to focus on personal photography and reorganizing organizing my archives and portfolio.
I’m really looking forward to focus on writing. The days will be getting shorter and colder but I’ll be inside cranking out those words.
In May 2019 I had the opportunity to explore the Art Institute of Chicago and Field Museum to research and analyze the ancient Khmer empire artifacts from Cambodia as research for an upcoming book. It was my delight to explore similar artifacts from this Labor Day in Kansas City at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.
There are a few similarities but also unique findings as well. As in Chicago it was in Kansas City that the description of these artifacts are incorrect. Minor points to help the general public understand but my way of thinking says that breeds ignorance. Let’s accept them for what they are instead of pandering, shall we?
As always though, I am grateful for the chance to explore more about this culture that has intrigued me since 1993 when I first discovered a book tucked away in the archives of a university library.
A partial bas-relief describing the Churning of the Ocean of Milk. Sugriva the monkey king (end) leads smaller gods in this work. Seated Buddha meditating for seven weeks. The serpent king lifts him up to prevent him drowning during a flooding storm. The artifact hosted in Chicago is more complete with the serpent’s head raised above and covering Buddha from the rains. A pillar fragment with a heavenly maiden or devata in sandstone. The crown on her head resembles the towers of the Angor Wat temple. Except for the docents, we had the Nelson Atkins museum to ourselves.
At some point in every portrait photographer’s career there will be a time when things just don’t work out according to the plan. Two characteristics will be very beneficial in getting around these situations; patience and flexibility. You also need to use what resources you have so the session won’t go to waste.
When my original plan to capture a model on roller skates through the park seemed like a good idea at the time, circumstances got in the way.
The golden hour should have been ideal but it was over an hour away. The lighting was complicated and scattered. The backdrop was beautiful in itself but was too distracting with the various trees, hills, rocks etc. Also, the surfaces to skate on were bumpy at best. Lastly, the model and her wardrobe was gorgeous but the backdrop did not compliment it at all.
Two lessons learned here
Have an alternate nearby location.
Make the most of what you got.
Even if I am working on a photo session and it all goes wrong, it is still worth making the most of the scene. You can walk away with something for your efforts and the model’s time. There were a few portraits to be proud of and to be honest, they actually came from the model’s suggestions on which area and poses we used. Again, remaining flexible and adapting helped salvage this photo session.
Here are a few masterpieces of art I enjoyed while visiting the Art Institute of Chicago recently. As evidenced in my photo portraiture, I have a love for faces. We find portraits fascinating because we are fascinated by people like ourselves. We’re also fascinated by people unlike ourselves. It is who we are and that is what makes us delightfully human. Similar but different. Fascinating.
Because I am still researching my novel based on the Khmer empire in Cambodia, I had hoped to discover some relics or art from this period and the Art Institute of Chicago did not disappoint.
What was disappointing were the descriptions of the artifacts. Which temple site was this taken from? Did the institute know?
One more disappointing concern? The description placards all say “Angkor period”. To be intellectually honest, let’s call it what it is. These were all from the Khmer Empire of Cambodia in the 11-12th centuries. The name Angkor is a reference to two of the biggest temples in this region, Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom. The terms “Khmer” or “empire” were not mentioned.
All these disappointments are cast aside for now because of the thrill of discovery. They were beautiful in a way that only those who study the culture can appreciate. Up until this moment I had only discovered a bas relief of an apsara dancer in the Houston Museum of Fine Arts.
For now, I will appreciate the experience but will write to the Art Institute for detailed information about this amazing collection.
Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, Angkor period 12/13th century Cambodia
Buddha, Khmer Empire period, 11th century. Here the naga (snake) raises him from flooding waters during his meditation and protects him from the rains on his head. A goddess Angkor period, 12th century CambodiaA celestial dancer called an Apsara. Angkor period, 11th century CambodiaGuardian Lion Angkor period, 12th century Cambodia
Here’s what I mean: it takes little effort to acquire beauty thereby the value of it decreases. You can push a button to make music from digital instruments. The internet gives us access to useful and useless information. Some of us pay hundreds of dollars for photo software when most of us pay little to free for apps on our phones to do the same thing. Why have expensive cameras and lenses at all when we have our phones?
We expect all of this to be free and on demand. We expect it to be free because it is easy to do and acquire. Anyone with a phone can now compete directly with professionals. Yes, the quality and style may be less but we’re trained to compromise quality for cheapness.
So who am I shooting for? You? Someone who wants my stuff and is willing to pay for it? Absolutely not. I shoot for myself because it is fun, therapeutic and I get to see new shit all the time. If someone else places a value on it, cool.
